Podcast: Warming up for the Winter Meetings

When Cole Irvin learned he’d been traded from the A’s to the Orioles on Thursday, his initial thought was about Gunnar Henderson, the new No. 1 overall prospect in baseball per MLB Pipeline. Irvin came to Baltimore when Oakland played a three-game series at Camden Yards last Sept....

The "ink" on our brand new Top 100 Prospects list list has barely dried. It’s topped by a new No. 1 in Gunnar Henderson of the Orioles and 29 teams have at least one representative. It’s a hitter-heavy list, as much as there were a year ago, with 71...

CHICAGO -- The Cubs' farm system has undergone a major upgrade in collective talent over the past couple of seasons. There were the blockbuster trades that shipped core players for prospects, plus the pool of additions through the MLB Draft. Those are the moves that tend to grab the headlines,...

This story was excerpted from AJ Cassavell’s Padres Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox. Nelson Cruz has unfinished business. The Padres have unfinished business. Maybe that's why the two are such an obvious fit. Cruz's one-year deal...

This story was excerpted from Jordan Bastian’s Cubs Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox. When Trey Mancini walks up the dugout steps at Wrigley Field this season, it will not be the first time he has worn a Cubs jersey at the Friendly Confines. Nearly two decades ago, a younger Mancini donned a white home jersey and blue Cubs hat while attending a game with a friend.

This story was excerpted from Adam McCalvy’s Brewers Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox. Garrett Mitchell was 12 or 13 years old when he got his first good look at Max Scherzer. Last year, Mitchell got another, and it was just one of the many ways in which his season-ending stint with the Brewers could help propel the outfield prospect into 2023.

This story was excerpted from Steve Gilbert's D-backs Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox. We're still a few weeks away from pitchers and catchers reporting, but there has been a lot of action at Salt River Fields over the past week as the D-backs hold their annual Instructional Camp for Minor Leaguers.

ST. PETERSBURG -- Two days after signing left-hander Jeffrey Springs to a four-year extension, the Rays locked up another key arm. Tampa Bay signed high-leverage reliever Pete Fairbanks to a three-year, $12 million contract extension that includes a club option for 2026, the club announced on Friday. The deal covers Fairbanks’ three arbitration-eligible seasons, and the option would cover his first year of free agency.

With the new balanced schedule in 2023, each team will be playing each other team at least once during the regular season. That will make for some exciting new faces in new places as many MLB stars make their debuts in ballparks they've never played in before. Here's a look...

ST. PETERSBURG -- Not long after officially signing a four-year, $31 million contract extension with the Rays that could pay him up to $65.75 million over the next five seasons, Jeffrey Springs had trouble putting the moment into perspective. “Honestly, I don't even know if it's fully sank in quite...

MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 preseason prospect ranking -- now in its 20th edition after it began as a Top 50 in 2004 -- is meant to be a series of individual assessments. We evaluate each player for who they’ve been, who they are and who they could be as Major Leaguers someday based on their performance and tools, and we slot them into Nos. 1-100 accordingly. But once that’s done, there are whole sorts of ways to slice and dice the list. By position. By age. By home country.

OAKLAND -- With the A’s lacking a true established option at several positions, Spring Training figures to include a handful of competitions to sort out those jobs. In some instances, those vying for certain spots could be players beyond the 40-man roster. So far, the A’s have announced 24...

NEW YORK -- Former Mets and Yankees slugger Darryl Strawberry has been a traveling minister for more than a decade, and he's found a new venue to preach the gospel -- the penitentiary. Strawberry, 60, made it known recently that he wants to pay it forward when visiting troubled individuals...

BOSTON -- At 5 years old, Bronson Arroyo was already a regular in the gym. By the age of 8, he was 55 pounds and squatting six times his weight. The 16-year Major Leaguer traces much of his success back to his father, who started him in the weight room and instilled discipline and positivity into Arroyo at a young age.

This story was excerpted from Mark Bowman's Braves Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox. In addition to competing for a spot in the rotation, Mike Soroka and Ian Anderson will spend the next couple of months vying for refrigerator space.